Prefabricated core structure for a prefabricated structural panel

ABSTRACT

A PREFABRICATED CORE STRUCTURE FOR A PREFABRICATED STRUCTURAL PANEL MADE UP OF A PLURALITY OF RELATIVELY SHORT, SOLID, MEMBERS ARRANGED IN SIDE-BY-SIDE ABUTTING RELATION IN TIERED ROWS HAVING SPACES BETWEEN THE MEMBERS TO FORM A HONECOMB STRUCTURE, AND A SERIES OF ELONGATED TUBULAR MEMBERS DISPOSED AT RIGHT ANGLES TO EACH OTHER AND PASSING THROUGH THE HONECOMB STRUCTURE TO RETAIN THE MEMBERS IN ASSEMBLED RELATION.

Nov. 2, 1971 A. SHOTMEYER 3,615,590

PREFABRICATED. CORE STRUCTURE FOR A PREFABRICATED STRUCTURAL PANEL FiledOct. 8, 1969 Pm m m V n m ALIBERT SHOTMEYER ATTORNEY United StatesPatent 3,616,590 PREFABRICATED CORE STRUCTURE FOR A PREFABRICATEDSTRUCTURAL PANEL Albert Shotmeyer, Wyckotf, NJ.

(46 Westerly Road, Saddle River, NJ. 07458) Filed Oct. 8, 1969, Ser. No.864,605 Int. Cl. E04c 2/10, 2/36 US. Cl. 52-663 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention Thisinvention relates tostructural members, and more particularly to a novelprefabricated core structure for a prefabricated structural panel havingimproved heat and sound insulation properties, and especially adaptedfor use as an interior or an exterior building wall.

Because of the rapidly increasing costs of building construction,resulting both from the increased costs of building materials and labor,both skilled and unskilled, there has been a rapid acceleration inefforts to devise ways and means to reduce such costs, mostly by the useof cheaper materials and by the use of prefabricated sec tions ormodules requiring a minimum use of labor in assembly.

Description of the prior art Most of the previous efforts in formingprefabricated panels involve the use of costly materials, such as woodand metal. The resulting panels are not only costly, but have poor soundand heat insulation properties, requiring not only the use of relativelythick sections to obtain the desired insulation properties, but also theuse of additional heat insulation when used as exterior walls.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of this invention, therefore,to provide novel prefabricated core structure for a prefabricatedstructural panel which overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art.

It is a further object to provide a novel prefabricated core structureand for a prefabricated structural panel having improved heat and soundinsulation characteristics obtained by employing elongated nonmetallictubing and members arranged to form a honeycomb unit.

[In brief, the invention comprises a novel prefabricated core structurefor a prefabricated structural panel having filler material to formopposite parallel walls. The filler material may be selected from theconventional cementitious filler materials such as Portland cement,stucco, sand, gypsum plaster and the like, and may use large proportionsof vermiculite or similar material if lightness in weight is a factor.

The core is made in the form of a honeycomb unit of a light material,such as polystyrene, marketed under various names such as Styrofoam, forexample, and comprises a plurality of relatively short lengths ofpolystyrene in side-by-side relationship to form rows, and a series ofrows arranged in tiers, the longitudinal axes of the short lengths ofpolystyrene in one row being laterally offset 3,516,59 Patented Nov. 2,1971 relative to the longitudinal axes of the lengths in an adjoiningrow to produce the individual cells of the honeycomb unit. The rows andtiers are interconnected by a series of elongated tubing of plasticmaterial or coated hard cardboard material. The tubing is disposed invertical and horizontal rows passing through the individual lengths ofthe honeycomb unit to maintain them in assembled relation, and theindividual tubes, comprising the tubing, are extended on each end beyondthe honeycomb unit to the end of the panel when the core is embeddedwithin a panel. The tubes are arranged in symmetrical form so that, whenthe panels are assembled in a wall and the like by conventional tongueand groove joints, the tubes in one panel axially align with those in anadjoining panel to form a continuous conduit through which Water pipes,electrical cable, and the like may be extended.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In order to obtain a clearunderstanding of the construction, method of manufacture, and use of thenovel prefabricated core structure, reference is made to the detaileddescription which follows and to the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is an end view of a preferred form of my novel prefabricated corestructure, illustrating the arrangement of parts forming the honeycombunit and its position in a finished panel shown in broken lines; and

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the construction of FIG. 1, illustrating,by the use of broken lines, a phantom prefabricated structural panelembodying the core structure.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the accompanyingdrawing, showing the core structure in solid lines, the numeral .10designates the core structure in its entirety embedded within aprefabricated structural panel 12 shown in phantom by the use of brokenlines. The core structure 10 includes a honeycomb or cellular unit 14made up of a plurality of elongated members 16 and half members 18. Themembers 16 and 18 can be made of any desired form in section, such :ascircular, oval, elliptical, triangular, square, rectangular or otherangular form, and are disposed in rows and in tiers to form a pluralityof elongated cells 20 between them.

In the preferred embodiment illustrated in the drawing, the members 16are hexagonal in cross section, as seen in FIG. 1, and are disposed inthe rows I, II, III, IV and V. Each row includes a plurality of themembers 16, arranged side-by-side in abutting relation, the angles orcorners engaging in line contact. On each end of the rows numbered IIand IV there is a member 18 in the form of one-half of a hexagon member16. If desired, however, a full hexagonal member 16 may be used at thesepoints.

The individual rows 1, II, III, IV and V are stacked in tiers as shown,with the upper angles or corners of one row or tier in line contact withthe lower angles or corners of an adjacent row or tier. In this manner,the longitudinal axes of the members 16 in one row or tier are laterallyoffset relative to the longitudinal axes of the members 16 in anadjoining row or tier.

The members 16 and 18 can be made of any desired material, such as wood,metal, cardboard, plastic, etc., but it is preferred that they be solidand made of a plastic material, preferably polystyrene marketed undervarious names, such as Styrofoam, for example. This latter material isparticularly adapted for a core structure in a panel, because it islight, has the desired strength for its purpose, is not affected bymoisture or water, and has exceptionally low heat and sound conductioncharacteristics.

The members 16 and 18 are held in assembled relation by a plurality oftie rods forming a tubing system including a pair of vertically disposedtubular members 22 and 23, and first group comprising four horizontallydisposed tubular members 24, 26, 28 and 30. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2,the vertical tubular member 22 passes transversely through the midportion of each of the left hand members 16 in the rows I, III and V,and through the right hand angles or corners of the half members 18 andthrough the left hand angles or corners of the adjacent members 18 inthe rows II and IV. Similarly, the other vertical tubular member 23passes transversely through the center of the right hand end members 16of the rows I, III and V, and through the left hand angles or corners ofthe right hand half members 18 and through the right hand angles orcorners of the adjacent members 16 in rows II and IV.

The horizontally extending tubular members 24, 26, 28 and 30 aredisposed in pairs on opposite sides of the vertically extending tubularmembers 22 and 23, the tubular members 24 and 28 being in parallelrelation and on one side of a plane passing through the longitudinalaxes of the vertically extending tubular members 22 and 23, and thetubular members 26 and 30 being in parallel relation and on the otherside of said plane. The three planes lying in the longitudinal axes ofthe tubular members 22 and 23, the tubular members 24 and 28, and thetubular members 26 and 30, therefore, are arranged in parallel, spaced,relation.

The horizontally extending tubular member 24 extends transverselythrough one end of the elongated members 16 of row I; the tubular member26 extends transversely through the opposite ends of the elongatedmembers 16 and half members 18 of row II; the tubular member 28 extendstransversely through one end of the elongated members 16 and halfmembers 18 of row IV, directly below the tubular member 24 in row I andthrough the same ends of the members 16; and the tubular member 30extends transversely through the opposite ends of the elongated members16 of row V, directly below the tubular member 26 in row II and throughthe same ends of the members 16. With this arrangement of tubularmembers, it is evident that at least one tubular member passes througheach of the members 16 and 18, except for a few of the members in themiddle of row III which are main tained in assembled relation by theadjoining members 16 in rows II and IV.

The tubular members 22, 23, 24, 26, 28 and 30 are shown in the drawingsas extending beyond the honeycomb unit 14 to the ends of the structuralpanel 12, the latter being provided with tongues 32 and grooves 34 tofacilitate assembly of a wall or other structural part. As is customaryin panels, two adjoining edges have tongues while the other twoadjoining edges have grooves. This arrangement of tongues and groovesprovides a symmetrical structure wherein, in assembly, the longitudinalaxes of the tubular members in one panel align with the longitudinalaxes of the tubular members in an adjoining panel. The vertical tubularmembers 22 and 23 extend into the tongue 32, as seen in the upper partof FIG. 1, and terminate at the bottom of the groove 34 as seen in thelower part of the figure. The horizontal tubular members 24, 26, 28 and30 terminate at the ends of the panel proper.

The prefabricated core structure can be incorporated into a structuralpanel 12 as follows:

A form of the desired size and shape can be used. Assuming a 4-inchthick panel, wherein the elongated members 16 and 18 are three incheslong, one pours on the bottom of the form a layer one half inch thick ofgravel or any filler material used, which is spread evenly. Theprefabricated core structure 10 is deposited on this one-half inch thicklayer so that the tubular members contact the sides of the form.Material may be inserted into the ends of the tubular members to keepout the filler material or any other foreign matter. As an alternative,the tubular members may be made longer than required in the finishedpanel, so that, when inserted in the form, the ends thereof extendoutside the form in suitable holes provided in the sides of the form.Filler material is poured over the core structure 10 in the form, sothat the material passes into and through the cells 20, until a 4-inchdepth is attained, forming a solid layer one-half thick above the core.After the filler material has set, the finished panel is removed fromthe form, and the superfluous ends of the tubular members which extendbeyond the panel are cut off.

The prefabricated core structure shown in the drawing is intended for asmall finished panel, and therefore a relatively few elongated members16 and 18 are used. It is evident that considerably more of suchmembers, as well as more tubular members, are required for largerpanels, assembled in the same manner.

It is intended to use this prefabricated core structure in the varioussizes of panels employed in the industry.

When assembled in a finished wall and the like, the ends of the tubularmembers in one panel align with the ends of the ends of the tubularmembers in an adjoining panel, in axial alignment, thereby providing astructure through which pipes and electrical conduits and the like canreadily be inserted.

I claim:

1. A prefabricated core structure for a prefabricated structural panel,comprising: a plurality of elongated members disposed in side-by-siderelation to form a plurality of rows, each of said members beinghexagonal in cross section to provide a plurality of corners, theelongated members in one row being disposed in abutting relation withthe elongated members of adjacent rows to form a tiered unit, thelongitudinal axes of the members in one row being laterally offsetrelative to the longitudinal axes of the members in an adjacent row,whereby the members in one row are in corner-to-corner contact with themembers in an adjacent row, forming a honeycomb unit having a pluralityof elongated separated cells of triangular cross section; and aplurality of tie rods passing through and interconnectin g said membersinto a single unit.

2. A prefabricated core structure as defined in claim 1, in which saidtie rods comprise tubular members extending beyond said honeycomb unitto points corresponding to the ends of a structural panel whenincorporated in a structural panel.

3. A prefabricated core structure for a prefabricated structural panel,comprising: a plurality of elongated members disposed in side-by-siderelation to form a plurality of rows, each of said members beingpolygonal in cross section to provide a plurality of corners, theelongated members in one row being disposed in abutting relation withthe elongated members of adjacent rows to form a tiered unit, thelongitudinal axes of the members in one row being laterally offsetrelative to the longitudinal axes of the members in an adjacent row toprovide a plurality of elongated cells; and a plurality of tie rodspassing through and interconnecting said members into a single unit, saidtie rods including a first group and a second group of tubular members,the members in one group being disposed substantially at right angles tothe members of the other group, the tubular members in the first grouppassing through and interconnecting the ends of the elongated members,and the tubular members in the second group passing through andinterconnecting the mid portions of the elongated members, said tubularmembers being disposed symmetrically with reference to a central planeparallel with one group of said tubular members and at right angles withthe other group of said tubular members whereby, when a pair ofstructural panels including said core structure are placed in end-to-endrelation, the longitudinal axes of the tubular members in one panel willalign with the longitudinal axes of the tubular mem- FOREIGN PATENTS 111the Panel- 908,084 1946 France 52-663 R f rence Cited 1,279,466 1961France 5'2 615 e e S 905,399 1962 Great Britain 52228 UNITED STATESPATENTS 5 771 03 10 1904 Burnell 52 63 JOHN G P m y EXaminer 2,253,6598/1941 Swarovski 52-663 2,800,688 7/1957 Lobel 52-663 52 309 615 6642,980,971 4/1961 Furiness 160229

